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Liu Zhen

A Chinese military magazine has suggested that if Taiwan sends a swarm of uncrewed combat boats across the strait – a strategy inspired by Ukraine – Beijing could counter with its GJ-21 stealth attack drones.
According to a commentary in Defence Review, the GJ-21 has long endurance and high manoeuvrability, which would give it a critical advantage against a “game changing” swarm attack by unmanned surface vessels.
The GJ-21 – a naval variant of the GJ-11 Sharp Sword – is the world’s first and only operational ship-based stealth combat drone.
It has been seen on the decks of the Fujian aircraft carrier and Type 076 amphibious landing ship the Sichuan, both of which have electromagnetic catapults that are faster and more powerful than steam catapults.

As tensions across the strait have worsened in recent years, Taiwan’s military focus has been on an asymmetric warfare – or “porcupine” – strategy to defend itself against attack from the much bigger and better armed People’s Liberation Army.
Part of that approach is developing thousands of low-cost, high-speed suicide drone boats – including projects like the Sea Shark and Manta Ray – designed to overwhelm PLA amphibious landing fleets through saturation attacks.
The strategy draws inspiration from Ukraine’s successes in the Black Sea, where Ukrainian forces have used drone boats equipped with man-portable air-defence systems to shoot down Russian helicopters and deployed drone-carrying boats to strike Russian warships.
Having learned from the Ukraine experience, Taiwanese drone boat swarms could incorporate air-defence capabilities.
That would make some of the PLA’s slow-moving, propeller-driven earlier generations of unmanned aerial vehicles – such as the Wing Loong series – particularly vulnerable, according to the magazine commentary.
But it said the GJ-21 would be able to evade tracking or interception by sea-level man-portable air defence systems given its stealth and speed. At the same time, it could carry out surveillance and strikes against the drone boats – especially over the Taiwan Strait that spans about 180km (111 miles).
“The GJ-21 is not only capable of conducting penetrating reconnaissance and stand-off strikes in amphibious assault operations but can also effectively counter emerging maritime threats such as unmanned boat swarms, serving as an aerial shield for the landing fleet,” the commentary said.
“Moreover, the GJ-21’s long range can be translated into extended loiter time over the landing zones, which is a capability of critical importance.”
The Sharp Sword drone took its maiden flight at the end of 2013 and made its public debut in 2019. It is believed to be capable of flying at subsonic speed, with endurance of about six hours and a combat range of more than 1,500km.
The GJ-21 variant was unveiled during last year’s Victory Day parade in Beijing. It has better stealth materials and aerodynamic design than the Sharp Sword and potentially has a longer range. All of these features could boost its performance in intelligence gathering, surveillance and reconnaissance in high-risk areas, according to the commentary.
It said the Type 076 amphibious assault ship, a “drone carrier”, could carry up to 19 GJ-21 drones – meaning effective area control could be done by two vessels in a joint operation, freeing up aircraft carriers for other objectives.


The first Type 076, the Sichuan, was launched in December 2024 and is still going through sea trials. The magazine said the drone carrier was the first with an electromagnetic catapult to operate a shipborne stealth combat drone, marking an unprecedented step towards intelligent, integrated naval aviation.
Beijing sees Taiwan as part of China to be reunited by force if necessary. Most countries, including the US, do not recognise Taiwan as an independent state, but Washington is opposed to any attempt to take the self-governed island by force and is committed to supplying it with weapons.


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Beijing could send in GJ-21s – which have long endurance and high manoeuvrability – to counter uncrewed combat boats, military magazine says


Beijing could send in GJ-21s – which have long endurance and high manoeuvrability – to counter uncrewed combat boats, military magazine says.


How the PLA may use stealth drones in a swarming boat attack from Taiwan

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Beijing could send in GJ-21s – which have long endurance and high manoeuvrability – to counter uncrewed combat boats, military magazine says

Beijing could send in GJ-21s – which have long endurance and high manoeuvrability – to counter uncrewed combat boats, military magazine says